Food Poverty: Fighting the North West's food waste problem

Video report by ITV Granada Reports journalist Sarah Rogers

Every day perfectly good food goes into landfill, it may've gone past it's 'best before' date but it's absolutely safe to eat and would be best served up on the dinner table to those who need it.

During lockdown, a Wirral based charity, Too Good to Waste, gathered food that would have been wasted when restaurants and business were closed and redistributed it to other smaller charities in the area.

But, businesses have since reopened and although some still donate the charity says they need much more than they're currently getting.

They're currently supporting 25 charities but hope to expand that to 250 and are calling on businesses that deal with food to divert waste from the dustbin to them, so they can get it to the mouths of those who are struggling.

The charity does the heavy lifting for other smaller outfits, they collect food and store it in a giant warehouse before allowing charities to pay £25 for 100kg of food that they can use to support families in need in their own areas.

Charities are coming from as far away as Anglesey to source food.

Jim Brett from a charity in Liverpool arrived whilst we were filming, he says the service is vital to support deprived areas left even more devastated by the pandemic.

A rise in gas prices could mean more families will have to choose between heating and eating this winter and food supply chain issues means food might be spoiled before it even reaches the shelves.

Find out more about how to donate food to the charity here.